450 ml Lowfat milk 1 x Bay leaf     Few black peppercorns 1 sm Onion , roughly minced 1 kg White fish fillets, such as cod, coley, pollack or possibly ling 175 gm Cooked peeled large prawns 4 Tbsp. Minced fresh herbs , (parsley, chives, chervil, tarragon) 100 gm Unsalted butter 2 lrg Shallots , finely minced 175 gm Button mushrooms , sliced 50 gm Plain flour 150 ml Double cream 1/4 x Lemon , pips removed 1 kg Potatoes , cut into chunks 2 Tbsp. Wholegrain mustard     Salt and freshly grnd white pepper Preheat the oven to 200C/400F/Gas 6. 1 Place the lowfat milk in a saute/fry pan with the bay leaf, peppercorns and onion. Bring to a simmer and cook gently for a couple of min. 2 Set aside for at least 10 min to allow the flavours to infuse. Add in the fish to the infused lowfat milk and poach for 5 min or possibly till just tender. Remove from the heat and leave to cold, then lift out the fish and roughly flake the flesh, discarding any skin and bone. 3 Place in a large bowl with the prawns and herbs. Strain the poaching lowfat milk into a jug. Heat half the butter in a pan and fry the shallots for 5 min to soften. 4 Add in the mushrooms and cook for a few min till tender, then stir in the flour and cook for a minute or possibly so, stirring constantly. Remove from the heat and gradually add in the poaching lowfat milk. Season, return to the heat and simmer for a few min. Keep stirring till thickened. 5 Stir in half of the cream and add in a good squeeze of lemon, then fold into the fish mix and season. Pour into a buttered 25cm/10in pie dish and set aside to allow a skin to create. 6 Place the potatoes in a pan of boiling salted water, cover and cook for 15-20 min till very tender. Drain, return to the pan to dry out and then mash till smooth. 7 Beat in the remaining butter and cream and the mustard. Season to taste. Carefully spread over the fish mix and pull a fork across the top to make a wavy-line pattern. Bake for 30-40 min till bubbling and lightly golden brown. Serve warm.

After some thought, I decided to put Game of Thrones aside and go for something more interesting: between Bates Motel and Hannibal I ended up choosing the latter, Mads Mikkelsen and the comments left on my blog in Portuguese being the reasons. I’m halfway through the show and loving each and every minute of it: the dark atmosphere, the music, the writing and the great acting are amazingly combined and what a surprise it was for me to see Scott Thompson in a drama series (I loved The Kids in The Hall back in the ‘90s, wouldn’t miss it for the world). I’m not a fan of Anthony Hopkins and after watching Manhunter I found Brian Cox a much better Hannibal Lecter; now I think Mads Mikkelsen is giving those two a run for their money. :D *** One of the latest DH mag issues I received features one basic sweet yeasted dough turned into several different recipes – they look so beautiful I felt like baking them all, but started with the jam one since it was what I had in my fridge. It was, indeed, a great way to start: these rolls are really simple, yet very delicious. Raspberry jam rolls slightly adapted from the always gorgeous Donna Hay Magazine 1 ¼ teaspoons dried yeast 2/3 cup (160ml) whole milk, lukewarm 55g granulated sugar 450g all purpose flour ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon pinch of salt 2 eggs, lightly beaten 2 teaspoons vanilla extract 100g unsalted butter, melted and cooled 200g raspberry jam icing sugar, for dusting Combine the yeast, milk and a pinch of the granulated sugar in a large bowl and set aside until foamy. Add the flour, remaining sugar, cinnamon, salt, eggs, vanilla and butter and mix with a wooden spoon until combined. Transfer the dough to a lightly floured surface and knead for about 10 minutes or until smooth and elastic (I used my Kitchen Aid with the dough hook for the entire process). Shape into a ball, transfer to a lightly buttered large bowl, cover with plastic wrap and set aside in a warm place for 1 hour or until doubled in size. Butter a 12-cup muffin pan. Transfer the dough to a lightly floured surface and roll it out onto a 60x25cm (24x10in) rectangle. Spread the jam over the dough leaving a 1cm border. Starting with the longest side facing you, roll the dough tightly to enclose the filling. Cut the roll into 12 slices and place each one of them, cut side up, into the muffin pan. Cover and set aside to prove again for about 40 minutes. In the meantime, preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F. Bake the rolls for 25-30 minutes or until golden and cooked through. Cool in the pan over a wire rack for 10 minutes, then carefully unmold and transfer to the rack. Dust with icing sugar. Serve warm or at room temperature. Makes 12

6 x Tomatoes 1 x Red pepper 1 x Green pepper 2 x Cloves garlic 1 ounce Chocolate 1 x Onion 1 can Kidney beans 1 lb Chopped meat mix 1 Tbsp. Chilli oil 1 fl ounce Extra virgin olive oil 1/2 bn Coriander , or possibly dry coriander 1 tsp Chilli pwdr 1 tsp Cumin 1 tsp Fennel seeds 1 tsp Dry oregano     Salt and pepper 1 x Lime , juice of 2 x Ripe avocados 1 tsp Cumin 1 tsp Grnd coriander 1 x Chilli, diced 1 x Lime     Salt and pepper 2 x Spring onions 1 tsp Chilli oil 1/2 x Tomato , minced 2 Tbsp. Coriander , minced     Grated cheese 1 bn Chives 1/4 pt Lowfat sour cream Heat in a frying pan the chilli oil, extra virgin olive oil, onions, garlic, coriander, chilli pwdr, cumin, fennel seeds and dry oregano so which it sweats down. Add in the green peppers and a touch more extra virgin olive oil, then the red pepper. Add in the chopped meat and simmer for 20 min. Next add in the beans, tomatoes, chocolate and coriander. Serve with coriander.